Steam-injector for internal-combustion engines.



J. S. DOUGLASS, In. STEAM INJECTOR FOR INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINES.

' APPLICATION FILED .IULY H.191]. 1,268,220.

Patented June 4, 19181- WITNESS IIl/l/E/IITOI? M Jamesfiflmglass Jr:

ATTORNEY li l@.

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Specification of Letters Patent.

-DI1TECTOE FOR INTERNAL-COMBUSTION ENGINES.

Patented June d, 191%..

Application filed July 11, 1917. Serial 110. 179,990.

To all whom it may conoem:

Be it known that I, JAMES S. Dooonass, Jr., a citizen of the United States, residing at Canandaigua, in the county of Ontario and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Steam- Injectors for Internal-Combustion Engines, of which the following is a-specification.

This invention relates to steam injectors for internal combustion engines, and has for its object to provide the ordmary gas intake manifold with a variable amount of steam, primarily for the purpose of reducing the formation of carbon in the engine cylinders, and particularly upon and around the spark plugs, thereby reducing the amount of time and labor required for cleaning the plugs, grinding the valves, and generally overhaulin and cleaning the engines. A furtherob ect is to reduce the consumption of fuel by injecting into the intake manifold a jet of steam which becomes incorporated with the explosive mixture before it reaches the exploding chambers of the engine for providing free oxygen, which tends to enrich the said mixture and cause it to explode more perfectly. And a further ob-' ject is to provide novel and simple mechanism for generating the steam and for automatically regulating the supply of steam which is drawn into the mixing chamber by the successive suction strokes of'the engine. The said mechanism also includes an air inlet valve which supplies automatically varying quantities of oxygen to mingle with and dilute the steam when desired.

I attain these objects by the means set forth in the detailed description which follows, and as illustrated by the accompanying drawing, in which Figure 1 is a side elevation of an internal combustion engine, to which my invention isapplied.

ig. 2 is an enlarged vertical section taken on line 22 of Fig. 1; showing the construction, arrangement and operation of a water feed-valve capable of performing the necessary work.

Fig. 3 is an enlarged central section; showing the construction and arrangement of one form of air-inlet valve.

In the drawing, 2 represents an internal combustion engine of conventional form, 3 the exhaust manifold, 4 the intake manifold, 5 the carburetor which supplies manifold 4 with gas in the usual manner through a conduit 5 and in which is shown by dotted lines one form of throttle 6. The throttle 6 is fitted with a lever 7, which is rocked to the extent shown by the full and dotted lines in Fig. 1 by a rod 8, which may extend back through the dash (not shown) of a vehicle and within reach of the driver, Who may operate the throttle in the usual manner, at will. The construction and operation of foot and hand accelerators are well known and need not be specially described in this application. The various parts of my invention will now be described.

9 represents a tank or reservoir of suitable size and preferably air tight, in which is stored a allon or more of Water to be used for ma King the steam which is to be mixed with the vaporized fuel. The tank 9 has the usual filling neck 10 which is sealed by a screw cap 10. The tank 9 may be located in any convenient position, but is preferably disposed some distance below the point 4 at which the steam is. admitted into the intake manifold 4. The reservoir 9 is tapped by conduit or pipe 11, which extends to a point near the bottom of the reservoir and is employed for lifting the water from the reservoir during the generation of the steam. The pipe 11 passes through an air-tight opening 11. in the top of the tank 9, and its upper end connects in suitable manner with the lower leg 12 of the body of an angular needle-valve 12. For convenience, the body 12 is disposed horizontally in the drawings, and also the needle-valve 13 is disposed in the same manner. The point of the needle 13 isdisposed in a seat 14, and the latter communicates with a second conduit or ipe 15, which extends upwardly from the odly 12 and asses through the horizontal portion 3' of t e exhaust manifold 3, and thence passes downwardl to the point 4 of the intake manifold see 1). The valve 13 is preferably threaded into a neck 12" of the body 12 and its outer end 13' is fitted with a disk 16, which is provided with a ring of perforations 17 arranged concentric to the stem 13 of said valve. The needle-valve 13 is rotated for varying and regulating the feed of the water from the tan 9 to the steam generating portion 15' of the conduit 15, by a crank or lever'18, which is pivoted at one end to the stem 13', while its opposite end is pivotally connected to the throttle operating-rod 8 by a pin 18. A screw 19 1s inserted through an opening 19'. in the lever 18, and is screwed into one of the perforations 17 of the disk 16. By this means the disk is driven or rotated by the rockmg movements of the lever 18 through the reciprocating movements of the rod 8, and the extent to which the needle-valve 13 may be opened for graduating the supply of water to the pi e 15, may be varied to suit different con itions, by changing the screw 19 from one hole 17 to another. In this way the opening of the needle-valve may be positively and automatically controlled to correspond with the opening and closing of the throttle6. The full lines in Fi 1 show the rod 8 in theposition for hol ing the throttle 6 substantially closed. Also the lever 18 is in position for holding the needle valve either closed, or slightly open (as shown in Fig. 2), while the dotted lines in Fig. 1 show the throttle 6 open and the lever 18 moved a corresponding distance leftward, which increases the opening of the.

needle-valve for allowing a greater amount of water to be drawn from the tank 9 and carried to. the steam generating pipe 15'. By operating my needle-valve simultaneously with the throttle and by the same operating means, (rod 8), the amount of water, and therefore the amount of steam supplied to the intake manifold 4 increases with the opening .of the throttle, which is desirable, because, as the engine is operated at a higher speed, the explosions are increased and a proportionate amount of steam is needed to enrich the gas, as well as to proportionately reduce the carbon accumulations referred to.

20 represents an auxiliary air valve which is preferably connected to the pipe 15 between the needle valve an the exhaust manifold 3, for the purpose of diluting the steam which my apparatus supplies to the intake manifold. The air valve I have shown is preferably automatic and its use is optional. Referring to- Fig. 3, 21 represents the hollow body of the air valve having a cage top 22 for the admission of air, and a valve seat 23 adjacent the cage, in which the valve 24 is disposed. The said valve has a stem 24', which extends through a screw plug 25 threaded into thebottom of the body 21, and a spring 26 disposed between the valve and the plug exerts its tension for normally holding the valve in its seat. To increase or decrease the tensionvof .any suitable manner, as by a throttle operating naeaaao the spring 26, the plu or outwardly. Thus t e amount of a 1r a mitted to the conduit 15 by the suct1on of the engine which draws the water from the tank 9, may be regulated or entirely shut off by the manipulation ofplug 25. The air valve may be connected to 1'i) hB7p1P6 15 m 2 The operation of my invention is as follows: When the mechanism is installed upon an engine, the tank 9 is filled with water, the needle valve is set by means of the perforated disk 16 and the screw 19 to supply the right amount of water to be converted into steam as it is drawn through the pipe section 15', by the heat of the exhaust. The air valve 24 is also adjusted by means of the plug 25 to admit the right amount of air to accompany the water. Thereafter, the action of the needle valve is controlled automatically by the movements of the rod .8, as explained. When my device is properly installed and adjusted, it needs no further attention or care, unless more or less steam or air are desirable, and in that case the valves 13 and 24 must be re-adjusted in the manner described.

When the engineis first started up,.the suction of the pistons, which draws the vaporized fuel from the carburetor, also is screwed inwardly at begins to draw the relatively small portions of water from the tank 9 upwardly through the needle valve and pipe 15, and by the time the exhaust passage 3' becomes hot enough to generate steam, the water has reached the conduit 15'. From that instant, and as long as the engine is working, steam is supplied to the intake manifold, as described. The volume of the steam is regulated by the adjusting and setting of the valve13, which rarely requires any change in the adjustment after the operator or driver becomes familiar with the invention.

Obviously my mechanism may be used for injecting fuel into engines, and some changes or modifications may be made in .the parts within the scope defined by the appended claims, without departing from the spirit of my invention.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new, is-

'1. The combination with the exhaust and intake manifolds and the throttle operating means, of a water supply, conduits for conducting the water from said supply into the exhaust manifold, means for conducting the steam generated in the exhaust manifold into the intake manifold, a valve controlhug the flow of water through said con duits, and a lever and a perforated dial for operating said valve, said lever operatively connected to the throttle operating means.

2. The combination with the exhaustand intake manifoldsand the throttle-operatinga lever and a perforated dial for operating means, of a'water-supply, conduits for consaid valve, said lever operatively connected ducting the water from said supply into to the throttle-operating-means, and means the exhaust manifold, means for eonductin admitting an air supply to one of said con- 5 the steam generated in the exhaust mamduits.

fold into the intake manifold; a valve con- In testimony whereof I aflix my si ature. trolling the flow of water from said supply, JAMES S. DOUGLAS J R. 

